Behind the Hero
by Soulfully Sadistic
Summary: Sonic has always been known as a smart-mouthed, over-the-top, save-the-day hero. However, he hasn't always been this way. A journey through worlds becomes an introspective journey through the true Sonic. WARNING: Huge twists right off the bat.
1. It Began With a Girl and a Boy

Chapter 1:

Shaggy, chin-length blue hair in desperate need of combing?

Check.

Green contacts to hide unusually black eyes?

Uh-huh.

Baggy clothes to hide feminine appendages?

. . . Unfortunately.

Dark blue ears flattened and bright eyes narrowed at the boy in the mirror. His name was Sonic, the speedy blue blur that could take down ten robots, trash talk his opponents, save towns and do it all with a smirk on his face.

However, Sonic wasn't real.

Elena, more affectionately known as 'Lene, was a meek, rather insecure girl. She hid all the time. She hid behind Sonic, her flaming, grinning, strong outside persona. Nobody knew who 'Lene was, because 'Lene never made herself known.

'Lene was born in Maroon City, Christmas Island, to a happy human-hedgehog hybrid family. The human-animal hybrids were common on that island—in fact, it was a haven for them. Many of them had been discriminated on strictly Mobian or strictly human Islands, and had sought out refuge. The Mobians and the humans were at war with each other, a war with no guns, but with sharp tongues and hidden spite, prejudice and whispered words of hate. Some had dared with come together—to even make relationships, create families, but were only shunned, their children too.

Christmas Island was 'Lene's home for the better part of her life. She grew up among family, friends, made a name of her own. She was known for her incredible speed and yet graceful agility. She liked to help people, and was looked up to by the young and admired by the older. At the time, there was 'Lene, and only 'Lene.

At least, until Christmas Island was attacked by the human forces.

'Lene had huddled in a nearly totaled building, tears rolling and nose running, comforting a few small, surviving children. She didn't have to look outside to know that they were all gone—all the people she'd known, all her friends, her _parents_.

She didn't know what to feel. It felt as if her heart was slowly being stretched, stretch so much that holes were forming, getting bigger, beginning to tear. She felt a dull ache in her chest area, and an awful feeling in the pit of her stomach. She felt horribly contained, and wanted nothing more than to scream out her pain, to screech and cry and curl into a protective ball forever.

But these children needed her. And 'Lene needed to be strong.

Another quick look outside told her that there were still some humans going around, looking for survivors to kill. She and the children hadn't been found yet. However, she noticed a particularly rotund man—he seemed to be in a hovercraft of some sort—the stood out from the rest. Long, meaty fingers stroked a bright red mustache, and goggled eyes looked on with glee. Presumably the leader.

'Lene's eyes narrowed.

_He kinda looks like an egg,_ was her rather dim attempt at humor. She swallowed, then, looked around at all the children huddled around her. "I won't let them get to you," she whispered harshly. "Stay here and keep quiet!"

One small voice rang out. "You're not gonna leave us here, are you?"

"Shh!" another child hissed. "You'll get us killed, Teff!"

'Lene was already rising. "Don't say _anything_. You guys will be safe, I swear." It was a rather big promise for a rather small ten-year-old to make, but she was willing to give herself the benefit of the doubt.

Ivo Robotnik gave a pestiferous grin. There went one city of those pesky little hybrids. Scum of the world, they were.

He was about to dispatch the remaining robots to destroy what was left—those pesky survivors—when he saw a tiny flash of blue. He was about to dismiss it as nothing, yet years of experience (and unexpected attacks) told him to turn and get a better look..

He snorted at what he saw.

There was a tiny, skinny, toothpick of a blue-shaggy-haired boy, dressed in clothes that looked as if they were going to swallow him. He pointed a finger.

"Y-you're a big _jerk_!" Not much confidence in the statement, hm?

He didn't even bother speaking to the child, but with a flippant wave of his hand sent two large robots barreling in the child's direction.

'Lene let out a shriek as she instinctively dodged the robots. It was like a game of dodge ball…except deadlier. They spun around none-too-gracefully, and once again charged in her direction.

Learning and finally understanding that dodging them forever would not help, 'Lene, who had nothing else to lose, shot out her small foot in an experimental kick.

The damage was incredible. 'Lene watched, dark eyes glimmering as sparks reflected in them, as the robot exploded in front of her. She coughed as smoke began to fill her lungs, but she could not bring herself to look away.

With a roar of rage, Robotnik sent even more robots the child's way, 'Lene's instinct kicking into overdrive. With aimed kicks and punches, she totaled the robots, a big smile growing upon her face, almost crazed.

_This was what they deserved_.

She brought two fists down upon the top of one last robot, grinning as it short circuited and exploded. Her face was covered in soot, and her lungs felt as if they were about to explode, but she still sent a triumphant grin towards the fat man—the egg man.

Robotnik shuddered with anger, but he knew when he was defeated. He'd have the get more information on this hybrid boy. He seemed to have incredible strength—and a heck load of gall. Reluctantly, he turned his flying device around, his human army following him upon boats, and left the island.

'Lene swallowed, watching them go. She felt her burst of adrenaline and her huge amount of strength leave her. Shaking, she fell to her knees, tears falling out of her eyes.

Even as the small children surrounded her, cheered for her, called her their hero, she was still all alone. All traces of her past life were gone.

And that was when Sonic the Hybrid was born.


	2. They Went With the Wind

Chapter 2:

"Sonic, come in Sonic. Do you read me?"

"Yeah," Sonic answered into her walkie-talkie, blue hair whipping behind her, cobalt ears flattening from the wind. "I can hear you Tails. Got any emeralds?"

"No, but Knuckles does. Listen, Sonic, my radar shows two huge chaos energies moving real fast towards an emerald. I know one of them must be you, so the other one has to be"—

"Shadow," Sonic hissed. "Don' worry about it, kid, I got him. He's not gonna be able to lay a finger on it." Before the fox hybrid could answer, Sonic switched off the walkie-talkie and went from a 200-miles-per-hour cruise to a 1000-miles-per-hour jog in a matter of seconds.

Sonic and Shadow had been huge adversaries ever since the two laid eyes upon each other. The elusive, dark hedgehog hybrid was two, no three heads taller than Sonic herself, much more toned than Sonic's thin frame, and a _whole_ lot more brooding than Sonic believed he should be. Both were enigmas to each other, their motives not really clear—and unfortunately, neither of them liked something they couldn't understand.

With a deep, cleansing breath, Sonic closed her eyes, trying to tap into nearby chaos energies. She could sense the familiar energies, trees, rocks, and stuff, but when she felt a sudden spike in energy, her breath caught in her throat.

_There_.

She allowed a cocky grin to grace her features as her arch-nemesis (besides Eggman, of course), dressed in his usual black, white-fur trimmed jacket and red undershirt, landed upon the stump of a tree, face grim and features pointing downward. As his red-tipped, black ears flattened, Sonic could easily tell he didn't want to see her.

Oh, well. All the more easy to annoy.

"Hey there, Shads," Sonic greeted, inwardly grinning at the way Shadow grimaced at the nickname. "Now, we both know what we're here for, but we really really need that emerald, so if you could be so kind as to"—

"Not a chance faker," Shadow growled resentfully, fists clenching, body tensing.

Sonic sighed, but lowered into a fighting stance. "I knew you weren't going to take this the easy way."

* * *

><p>Sonic was the one thing Shadow was never able to figure out.<p>

On the outside, the fifteen-year-old was some dumb, arrogant boy with a pure sense of justice. And yet, he wasn't. His inner workings were intricate and complicated. Everything he did was for a reason, even if the reason wasn't clear at the moment, or would ever be. He seemed so grown up, so adult-like, and yet he was still a child. Shadow noticed that his voice hadn't yet matured, and that he was much too slim and small for any fifteen-year-old boy. His face held slight traces of baby fat, and his eyes were big, too big, giving him too much of a girlish aspect for Shadow's idea of a boy.

And yet, despite these childlike nuances, Sonic was a rigid shell, unable to be penetrated.

_And,_ Shadow thought dully as he narrowly dodged another kick. _He's got pretty good kicks_.

Sonic flew at her opponent, fueled by anger at the fact that Shadow did not seem to be taking this seriously. She swept a leg under him, catching him off guard, and didn't wait till Shadow was on the ground to attack again. Shadow, however, saw this coming and used the momentum of falling backwards to create somewhat of a midair roll and deal Sonic a crushing punch to the chest.

_He's also got pretty brittle bones,_ Shadow pursed his lips in—was it disappointment?—as he heard the crack of a few ribs breaking.

* * *

><p>Sonic grunted. <em>Damn brittle bones..<em>. However, she shot forward and caught Shadow with a nasty right hook, sending him tumbling a few feet back. She used this opportunity to gather her bearings, placing a hand on her ribs and panting. She glared warily as Shadow began to get to his feet.

"A worthy adversary," Shadow said at length, rolling his neck. Sonic winced at the cracks. "But I'm afraid I'll have to end this."

"Ha!" Sonic taunted, grinning despite the stinging pain in her chest. "I-I'd like to see you try!"

Not wasting a second, Shadow lunged forcefully at Sonic, catching her with a painful jab to the stomach, then pinning her down as her breath was knocked away. Sonic tried fruitlessly to kick him off once she realized what kind of position they were in, but alas, Shadow simply tightened his grip.

With a shit-eating smirk, Shadow said, "I have a preposition."

Sonic scowled, ears flattening against her blue hair. "Shoot."

"Simply give up the emerald, admit you've lost, and"—

"Never!" Sonic began to flail around even harder, trying to push the unfazed Shadow off of her. "I'll never submit to a jerk like _you_!"

Shadow's smirk only grew. "It's funny how much you sound like a girl right now. In fact, if I didn't know any better…"

Sonic snarled. "Go play in traffic."

"My, my, aren't _we_ in such a position to be snarky."

Sonic wasn't about to admit it, but she was growing rather uncomfortable under Shadow's vice-like grip. She felt…submissive, and if there was one thing Sonic the Hybrid didn't like, it was submitting. A shimmer somewhere to her left caught her eye, and she turned her head a little to catch sight of the cyan-colored chaos emerald. It was then that she realized that she wouldn't be able to get out of this trap with sheer force.

"So, have we come to an agreement?"

Sonic gave her trademark smirk. "Yes. And the verdict is…screw you!" Quickly she twisted onto her side so that Shadow lost his balance and fell off, stunned. Without even trying to get up, Sonic scrabbled for the Chaos emerald.

However, something was happening.

The chaos emerald, having been exposed to such large chaos energies (Sonic and Shadow) both having spiked above normal levels from their squabble, was beginning to react.

"Sonic!" Sonic's ears swiveled at the sound of Tails' voice, slightly panicking as he came closer. "Sonic!"

Unfortunately, this was distraction enough for Shadow to get even closer to the emerald, doubling the chaos energy near it. It was beginning to glow brightly.

Sonic's cry of Tails' name was lost on the wind as all three disappeared.

**And that's all for now. Please review!**


	3. To a Strange New World

Chapter 3:

**Oh, come on, you guys! I can see the favorites and alerts. Please just review! They make my heart soar. :D**

Sonic opened her eyes to a world of color.

All around her, lights flashed, broadcasting things in a language she could not understand, flashing words she could not read (however, she recognized the words from one of Tails' lecture lessons as "English"). The sky was dark above her, yet she could see no stars. There were so many voices around her, so many strange foreign beings—humans?

They seemed different than the humans on Mobius; on Mobius they were soft spoken and reserved, speaking in harsh, guttural tongues and looking around with distrustful eyes, but these people seemed loud, inquisitive, curious. They eyed Sonic's ears and blue hair and tail not with wariness, but with strange officiousness. Sonic began to squirm. Usually she liked being the center of attention, what with being the hero and all, but…

With a squeak, Sonic narrowly barreled out of the way as a large rectangular object on wheels sped past her, making an obnoxiously loud sound, like the sound of a goose. Amplified by ten. However, over all this noise, Sonic was able to pick up the terrified cries of a certain genius eight-year-old fox hybrid calling for her name.

"Tails!" Sonic called out, beginning to panic, and immediately the chatter around her grew louder. The humans seemed to be asking questions, but she could not understand. "Tails!" Sonic was becoming desperate.

She waded her way through heavily perfumed bodies, trying her hardest not to cough. Then, she heard it:

"Sonic!"

It was faint, but it was all she needed.

Sonic continued to push through the mass of people (she couldn't run; it was too crowded) searching for the familiar baggy jeans, or the tool belt, or the yellow sweatshirt. Even a lock of curly golden hair would do.

Then she remembered: the walkie-talkie!

Grinning widely she fished the little black device out of the deep crevices of her pocket. She pressed the button, praying to Chaos Tails would be able to hear her. "Tails. Come in, Tails. Do you read me?"

She let out a relieved sigh as Tails' voice crackled back, "I read you loud and clear, big bro. Where are you? And how did you get the idea to use the walkie-talkie?"

Sonic smiled, even though Tails was unable to see it. "Hey, can't I be smart once in a while?" She stopped and studied her surroundings. "I'm next to a really tall building…"

"Well, that's no help."

Sonic frowned. "It's got pretty red flashing lights near it—oh wait, now they're turning green! And the rectangle thingies are moving forward. A signal?"

At length, the walkie-talkie crackled once more. "Yeah, Sonic, from what I can understand, you're on a 'sidewalk'. Those rectangle things are called cars. And what they're on is a road." His calm voice suddenly became much more excited. "Sonic…I think we're on _Earth_!"

Earth, huh? Strange. Sonic was silent for a moment as she once again studied her surroundings. So this was where humans came from. She wondered why she didn't feel some strange spark of connection, since she was partly this species. Then she said, "Okay, Tails, the flashing light thingy turned green and the…cars stopped. I'm coming across."

Sonic broke into a light jog (around a measly 50 mph), jostling those around her in her haste. She stopped immediately (she was glad for her reflexes) when her foot hit a slight bump in the ground. She guessed this must the be sidewalk, and stepped onto the gray land.

It felt smoother under her sneakers, she noticed. Less traction and bumps. She took note that she would have to be careful if she were to run this terrain.

Then she remembered: "Tails?"

"Sonic!" In the next second, Sonic was barreled down by a two-tailed fox hybrid. "Hey, big bro!," he said. "Geez, I finally found you. You need to learn how to stay still."

Sonic snorted. "I thought you knew me better than that, Tails," she replied, carefully standing up and inspecting her tiny blue tail for bruises. "You're getting stronger every day, huh?" she remarked.

"Heh…" Tails grinned sheepishly. "Sorry about that."

Sonic ruffled his hair. "No problem. Now let's get out of…here…" Sonic turned to find she and Tails were completely surrounded by bustling, tall (or maybe Sonic was just short) creatures, all pointing at them as if too scared to reach out and touch them.

Eyes widening, Sonic stepped back, using one hand to hug Tails to her side. Her ears flattened, disliking the coarse sound of the voices attacking it. Even Tails had his namesakes wrapped around himself protectively. Suddenly, her much-too-large sweatshirt and sweat pants seemed even larger, and she could even feel herself sweating. She wanted out, now, but she didn't want to risk hurting anybody there.

Before she could ask Tails to fly them up and out of there, to an uncertain safety, she started and turned as a new voice, deeper and louder than the rest, cut through. A few tall, rigid men, hair and part of their faces covered by dark blue helmets and face masks pushed their way through the crowd, announcing something that made many of the people step back and out of the way. One man began to speak.

"Um…Tails?" Sonic hissed.

"Working on it," Tails quickly replied, rapidly trying to change his walkie-talkie into a translator of sorts.

Sonic glared at the men, as if trying to warn them to stay away from her and from Tails. Yet, one of the men (presumably the leader; he didn't have a helmet) only came closer. She gritted her teeth and let out a fierce growl, making Tails flinch beside her.

"I'm almost done…" Tails whispered, working frantically, his hands shaking under the pressure.

"_Hurry_."

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Tails triumphantly held up a rather poorly made, but working, translator. Besides, they weren't in much of a position to be picky.

"Awesome, Tails," Sonic grinned at the boy. "So how does it work?"

Eagerly Tails pressed a button and spoke, "Hello," into it. After a bit of crackling, Sonic heard Tails' voice again, but in a completely different language. Sonic grinned and thumped the proudly smiling hybrid's back. The man's eyes lit up.

* * *

><p><em>Remarkable<em>, the officer chief, by name of Ronald Jones, thought to himself, fascinated. It absolutely baffled him as to how a small boy—with wolf ears and two tails!—was able to so quickly create a device that had the capability to change human history altogether. However, he kept a calm and stoic face on, not allowing his emotions to be betrayed by his expression.

He knelt down to their level and held out a hand, in which the wolf boy eagerly placed his translating device. Jones looked at it for a bit, admiring the intricacy (even though it was rather clunky). Around him the crowd had gone silent; only the sound of the squeal of the tires of a news truck was to be heard.

Jones cleared his throat, then pressed the small button on the device. Into it, he asked, "What are your names?"

He held the object out to the small creatures (he wasn't sure what exactly to call them yet) and listened as his words were made into seemingly senseless garbles.

This time, the slightly older-looking boy (who seemed strangely feminine) grabbed the translator, scowling at Jones as he did so. He muttered angrily into the thing until the smaller boy tapped his shoulder and whispered into his ear. The older one immediately blushed and snorted and pressed the button, restarting his guttural mumblings.

When he finally held it out again, Jones heard, "I'm Sonic. This is Tails. And I suggest you tell us where we are and who you are before I spindash you."

* * *

><p>Jones cocked his head, bemused, but told the two his name. They proceeded to tell him that they were rather lost, and actually lived in a place called Mobius. Jones was pretty sure his eyebrows were beginning to disappear through his bangs from his absolute incredulity. He learned (through heated corrections) that Tails was a fox hybrid, not a wolf hybrid, and that Sonic was a hedgehog hybrid gifted with incredible speed (at which he was rather doubtful), and that in their world, humans and "Mobians" were at war with each other, making their race (the hybrids) hated and unwanted.<p>

Jones shook his head in shocked amusement. And he'd thought he'd seen it all…


	4. With Two Troubled Girls

Chapter 4:

The next few hours were somewhat of a blur for Sonic. She and Tails were whisked away from a world of chatter and flashing lights to a quiet, close-knit neighborhood of sorts, all the while sitting rather uncomfortably in a comfortable leather seat.

Jones, who was driving, eyed his two young charges warily through his rearview mirror. Since they were all alone, and since Jones was most definitely not about to allow a super fast and super smart duo to run around and wreak havoc around the city, he had decided to bring the two home. That was an easy decision.

Now, the hard part was going to be explaining to his ever-so-lovely family as to why there were two powerful hybrids from another world residing temporarily in their home.

Joy.

The car slowed down as he pulled into his familiar driveway, hearing the squeak of leather as Sonic tensed up. Hushed whispers were exchanged behind him. He sighed and looked back at the two. "Home," he said carefully, pointing the the house in front of the car. "Home. You"—he pointed to them, "Live here."

Tails sheepishly handed him the translator. Jones sighed.

The two were hurriedly hustled into warned to keep quiet, lest they disturb the calm blackness of the night.

Sonic looked around. It looked a little too…homey, for her taste. It was rather heavily furnished, with fragile-looking relics and ornaments and such. She idly kicked away a little toy, wrinkling her nose. If she wanted to run, she'd have to take it outside.

Taking the translator from Tails, she questioned, "Do you have any kids?"

After giving Sonic an odd look, he answered at length, "I have two. Ten-year-old Kevin and sixteen-year-old Melissa." After a pause, he asked, "How old are you two?"

This time Tails answered. "I'm eight," he said, "And my big brother is fifteen."

Jones frowned. Sonic certainly didn't _look_ fifteen. At length, he asked, "Who's looking after you?"

Sonic scowled, not even bothering to take the translator. Jones watched him point to himself. His eyes widened. "_You_ are? But that's impossible!"

Tails took Sonic's hand protectively as he answered tightly, "I think it's time for bed."

"Ah, y-yes, of course." Feeling rather insensitive, he led his two charges to a guest room.

Sonic pursed her lips. It was simple, and small, and she liked that. However, Tails, being who he was, would surely pile up most of the room with wacky inventions and random blueprints that Sonic would be unable to understand. She frowned, critically taking in the small desk (with a lamp upon it, to Tails' delight) and the bed next to it. There was only one bed, but she wasn't too terribly uncomfortable about it, since she slept with Tails many times when he was afraid of a thunderstorm.

Suddenly conscious of the man behind her awaiting her approval, she turned around and gave him a thumbs up along with a trademark wink.

Jones let out the heavy breath he did not know he had been holding.

Sonic and Tails stood before the door, waiting for Jones to leave. When the door shut and the footsteps faded, both let out a relieved sigh. Tails wearily crawled into the small bed. "You coming, Sonic?"

Sonic sighed. "Yeah," she said, finally shuffling in beside Tails. She shuddered. The blanket felt strange and new to her, as she usually slept under the stars. Even though it was soft and satin-like, it felt rough and scratchy against her skin. The pillow felt lumpy and odd. She shifted.

"You're not comfortable." It was a statement, not a question.

Sonic frowned. "I…guess I'm not. I mean, this bed is"—

"I _don't_ mean the bed." Tails turned to face her. "You don't feel comfortable here. In this world."

There was a long, drawn-out silence.

A chuckle.

"I guess I don't. Was I that obvious?"

"…Yeah."

Another silence.

"I think I'm uncomfortable here too. This world, I mean. It's so different. And…loud."

"Mm-hm."

"You're getting tired," Tails observed.

"Nah, I'm fine, little buddy. And it doesn't matter if we're scared or anything. It just means we might need to work a little harder to make it a better time for us, yeah? And I'm sure Knuckles is working on saving us."

Her only answer was a slightly calming snore. "Night, Tails," she murmured, finally falling into a rather troubled sleep.

* * *

><p>She awoke with a start. Brown eyes darted around suspiciously. She never really was a light sleeper. She listened, tense, ready to jump out of bed and scream madly for help if needed.<p>

"Mel?"

Shoulders sagging, Melissa Jones let out a deep sigh of relief. "There you are, Alyssa. I was so worried! Dad's going to be so _mad_!"

"Yeah, yeah," her twin sister came out of the shadows, smelling of alcohol and smoke.

"Smoking?"

"Yeah."

"Drinking?"

"Mm-hm."

"Alyssa!" the usually mild Melissa snapped. "You realize you're giving a bad name to our family? Dad's the police chief; he's gonna arrest you one of these days! You know he won't even mention you in conversations anymore? You've been gone for _three days,_ sis, _three days!_"

Alyssa waved a flippant hand, but Melissa could see this bothered her. "Whatever. I'm just having fun."

"_No,_ you're just contracting STD's!"

There was a long, awkward silence.

"So, are you gonna let me in, or…"

"Get in here, stupid."

Melissa lifted the covers, shifting slightly as the weight of her twin sister made its way onto her bed. Her voice now hushed, Alyssa asked, "So, has Dad come home yet?"

"Not that I know of. I've been sleeping, if you haven't noticed."

"Whatever. Did you cover for me at school?"

"Yeah. Alyssa, you really need to get yourself sorted out. Your life's gonna be a mess if you keep going on like this."

"I know, I…" A sigh. "I'm trying. I really am, sis, you've got to believe me. It's…it's been kind of hard after Mom…you know."

"I believe you, Al. You know I do. But you have to try harder."

"I know."

Alyssa shifted closer to her twin. "You know I love you, right?"

"Yeah, yeah. It's hard not to, you know?"

"Whatever."

Melissa waited until the soft breaths of sleep fell upon her ears. Then she whispered, "I love you too, Alyssa. Please get better."

**Whoo! A LOT of dialogue in this chapter, no? Tell me what you think!**


	5. And Less Troubled Enemies

Chapter 5:

**Well. I tried to make you guys a longer chapter. Enjoy!**

**Ugh. I know, I know, I SUCK at writing scenes where they don't do anything. I'm more of an action writer, and I tend to write passive scenes WAY too quickly. Sorry!**

* * *

><p>Early morning found Sonic racing around in small circles, desperate to stretch out her legs but also wanting to be careful not to wake anybody else up, namely Tails. Kid was a nightmare in the morning.<p>

Sonic felt horribly cramped and pent up inside this tiny little room, no matter how empty it was. No room was big enough to hold the hyperactive hybrid, fortunately or unfortunately.

Sonic was seriously contemplating spindashing a wall when, suddenly, the sound of voices reached her. She tensed, one foot pointing towards Tails (who was currently mumbling something about quantum physics) and one pointing towards the door, in case of a need to attack. She narrowed her eyes, not to look fierce, contrary to popular belief. Sonic was simply trying to improve her own bad eyesight out of habit.

"…I swear I heard something in there."

"I told you to quit snacking on the chocolate, Kev."

"But, _Mel_"—

An exasperated sigh. Even though Sonic could not understand the voices, she could easily tell that they were arguing about something. _Wonder what it's about…._

"Listen, Kev, I'm gonna open this door right now and _prove_ to you that there's no…one…"

Melissa's eyes widened, and she felt her mouth form a small "o" in shock. Her hand slipped lifelessly from the doorknob as she continued to stare at the scrawny, blue-haired, cat-eared little thing in front of her, greenish eyes narrowed, looking as if he was about to blow her head off right then and there.

Melissa opened her mouth to scream, her breath being sucked in as she prepared herself…

And all of a sudden, her mouth was covered.

Melissa opened her eyes to a strong, calculating green above a disapproving frown. She barely had time to move before the creature got off of her (when had he gotten on?). "_Ssh!_" the boy intoned roughly, gesturing over to the bed, where there was a lump that Melissa hadn't noticed before.

"O-oh…I see. I'm sorry," Melissa said simply, unable to think of anything else. Maybe, 'Who are you and why are you in my house?' seemed a good place to start. The next time she looked up, however, Kevin was all over to boy, asking him incessant questions, such as "Wow, are those real? Do they hurt? What's your name? Do you come from a different planet? Are you evil or good?"

Melissa sighed, shaking her head—it seemed as if her ADHD brother was unfazed (if not fascinated) by the miracle standing right in front of him. Of course, she knew, she had been young once too, so she could at least begin to understand where Kevin was coming from. In fact, she had a few questions herself. "Hey," she began, grabbing the boy's attention. "Who are you anyway?"

Sonic frowned at the tall girl in front of her. It was obvious that she was asking a question, but she wasn't able to decipher it. She held up a finger, wanting to girl to wait, and without waiting for a reply, turned and picked Tails' tool belt from the table. After inspecting it, and making a note to tell Tails _not to be making explosives without her permission_. She pursed her lips and blindly searched until her scrabbling fingers found the familiar, jagged cold surface of the small communication device.

To demonstrate, Sonic turned back to the human (who was now looking at her with a questioning stare) and held the device to her lips. She mumbled into it, "Hi. I'm Sonic," and watched as the human's brown eyes widened. A look of confusion passed over her face before one of slight cognition. _Smart girl_, Sonic thought as the girl grabbed the device from her hand. She nodded slightly and flicked her ears in approval. The two then began to speak, continuously tossing the translator between each other while Kevin looked on, awed.

"My name is Melissa."

"Nice name."

"Yours is cool, too."

"You don't seem very fazed by this."

"Weirder things have happened."

Sonic decided right then and there that she liked this girl. She had a rather calm, dry, and smart sense of humor. She was silent for a moment, fidgeting with the small device in her hand. "I'm going to go take a walk," she said at length. She gestured towards the grumbling lump of Tails and said, "He'll wake up on his own."

Without waiting for an answer—she'd been cooped up for much too long!—Sonic agilely slipped past the human girl.

It seemed that the slamming of the front door dragged Melissa out of her shock (the only reason she had been able to keep calm) and she slumped to her knees, shaking.

Melissa Jones was not one to take living miracles easily.

* * *

><p>…Stupid sunlight. It kept slapping him in the face.<p>

Tails decided right then and there that he'd build something to extinguish the sun or something. Then he could get all the sleep he wanted. _Take that, photosynthesis. Screw being the source of energy for all living things, I just want some _sleep.

It was rather obvious that Tails had a very slight lack of common sense in the mornings. _And_ that his reflexes weren't very good either.

"Hey there!"

It took him a whole minute to realize that this _wasn't_ Sonic, but a young gray-eyed, strangely hyperactive boy, staring at him with his eyes wide. His very intelligent, lengthy, and well thought out response was this:

"_Fffgawdwhatfriggin' TIME issit…better be friggin' chilidogsontheh…"_

Absolutely stunning.

And it didn't exactly help that he didn't speak the boy's language; Tails knew he already sounded like a monster. And yet, the boy watched him with unrelenting fascination, his eyes wide.

"Ugh." The normally mild-mannered fox hybrid was at a loss for words, literally. Blindly he reached for his tool belt lying prone on the desk next to him, searching for his translator. He'd have to modify it a little bit sometime.

It was only a few minutes of fumbling before he actually opened his eyes.

And it was only a few minutes after that that Tails realized it was gone.

* * *

><p>Sonic was approaching the sound barrier, and fast. Only a few seconds before the exhilarating, ear-splitting, thrilling boom. Only a few seconds before the landscape, flattened against the wind, would only become lines and colors.<p>

Only a few seconds before _relief_.

Sonic let out a battle cry as she surged forwards, the desert sand kicking up behind her and the air slamming into her. It was _glorious_.

Boom.

Sonic leaped daringly through the air, filled with adrenaline, and knowing that her small, frail body would pay later for her bold ignorance. She didn't care. Sand whipped into her face and stung her eyes. Her lungs struggled, straining against her ribs to keep up with her feet. Her head was pounding, every part of her legs hurt.

She _loved it._

She lengthened her strides, effectively quickening her pace. She seemed to forget all about her current predicament, that she was in a whole new world, that Mobius was in grave danger without her…

She screeched to a halt.

_Mobius was in grave danger without her._

* * *

><p><em>Booting up…<em>

_ System scan…_

_ Surroundings scan…_

Red orbs brightened, dimmed a little, and then brightened once more. Whirring sound ensued as metal parts clicked into place with short, smart clicks. A small, aerodynamically shaped, humanoid robot arose from the dust, the only sign of "life" in an otherwise barren terrain. Flesh colored metal limbs stretched, testing their abilities.

A robotic head rotated, taking in all around it. There was nothing but coppery, rusty, barren juts and crags.

_Initiating life form scan…_

* * *

><p>He awoke feeling as if he was being pricked from all over. Red ears flattened, but amethysts did not reveal themselves. A hoarse groan gurgles from his dry throat, and slowly he sits up, his eyes slowly fluttering open. "Ugh…<em>Gawd<em>, that musta been sooome party last night… Must be having the hangover of all hangovers…you know. If I actually drank. Am I talking to myself? I've been hanging around Sonic _way_ too much." He continued on this vein before actually realizing that _no_, he was not on his secluded island in the sky, and that prickly feeling was from the rough branches of a _tree_.

He was in a tree.

Now, Knuckles was not one unfamiliar to surprises. He got surprised all the time (read: he got snuck upon by Sonic all the time). He assessed the situation.

The last thing he remembered was making a run for it. He was clutching an emerald to his chest, too—the red one, he remembered. Knuckles sat up slowly, being careful to maintain balance on the branch. Wrinkling his nose, he roughly brushed the leaves from his red jacket and emptied dust and dirt from his baseball cap.

Knuckles leaped gracefully to the ground, eyes widening as he looked around.

_This definitely wasn't the forest_.

Freshly trimmed grass surrounded him, spotted with the occasional tree or patch of wildflowers. His ears pricked from under his cap at the sound of the chirping of birds and the buzz of bees. Knuckles closed his eyes and took a breath. How _quiet_. How _serene_. How—

"Hey, Mommy, look! It's a man with red hair!"

He always hated kids.

Yet, when he turned around to yell, he was not met with the inquisitive stare of a Mobian, nor a hybrid. No, it was a young human boy (five at the most), standing with a youthful-looking woman. Presumably his mother or sister.

The taller of the two gave him a pleasant smile. Knuckles frowned. "Are you lost, sir?" _Pfft. Sir?_

Well, he was lost.

And he _did_ kind of need help.

With a resigned sigh, he opened his mouth to speak—lowering himself down to get help from a _human, _really!

…And was promptly knocked down from behind.

"Knux! Hey! Long time no see!"


	6. That Dragged in a Grumpy Boy

Chapter 6:

"Mind getting off of me?"

"Nah, I'm quite comfortable here."

Knuckles growled. _He_ wasn't comfortable. He doubted _anyone_ would be comfortable with a blue-haired blunder sitting on top of them. He groaned, going lax for a second, letting Sonic drop his guard.

Then, before Sonic could even begin to comprehend what was happening, Knuckles swiftly and expertly twisted his boy in such a way that Sonic fell right off, stunned and dazed. "Ow…"

"I hope you think twice before doing something like that again," Knuckles said smartly, before nudging Sonic (playfully?) with his foot, a slight smirk on his face. "Oy, whassamatter, huh? Someone a little pissed off?"

Suddenly an evil grin appeared on Sonic's visage. "Better to be pissed off," she began.

Knuckles' face visibly darkened, "Don't say it…" he warned.

"Than to be pissed _on_!"

"_Grah!_" Knuckles angrily kicked Sonic's prone form, eliciting a long, drawn-out, and very whiny, "Ow…". If there was a hitch of his breath, Knuckles ignored it. "You're such an idiot, Sonic," he growled. "We're in a different world, with no place to stay, and Mobius could be in danger this very second! Chaos knows what could be happening to the Master Emerald this very second!"

For a split second, Knuckles noticed Sonic flatten his ears, facial expression turning slightly obscured, but it was so fleeting it was almost unreal. "That's where you're wrong, Knucklehead! Tails and I have found a place to stay. And I'm sure the hosts wouldn't mind one more!"

Knuckles raised an eyebrow. "Eeh…"

"Ple-e-ease~? It could be a sleepover party or something, Knuckles!"

Knuckles' eye twitched, but he kept his composure. When Sonic became like this, there was often no room for argument, no matter how childish the hybrid might act. He turned to the human woman, who had been watching the scene with great interest and slight apprehension. "Thank you, but your help is not needed."

Sonic hopped up. "_Woah! _Knux, how can you speak their language?"

"Knux" frowned and rolled his eyes. "Unlike you, I can actually be bothered to learn things." Sonic winced. _Ouch._ "Now, are we simply going to stand around and terrorize this poor human or are we actually going to get something done? Because last time I checked, Mobians don't exactly get back to their planet from an unknown world by simply standing around doing nothing."

"Yeah, yeah," Sonic waved a flippant hand, already turned away from Knuckles. Knuckles watched him do a quick survey of the land before grabbing his hand (ignoring the fervent protests) and zooming quickly off without a second thought his excited squeal of joy whipped away with the cold, fleeting claws of the wind.

_Strange_, Knuckles thought, as tiny bits of the terrain beat against him and the world around him quickly faded to a blur of colorful dancing lines. _Always thought Sonic's hands would be a bit rougher._ He winced as a particularly large pebble nailed him in the side of his face. "Sonic, _slow down!_" he yelled over the wind.

Sonic turned to him, a mischievous wink in his eye—how did he do that without bumping into something?—and simply went faster. Knuckles' resulting screeches (NOT screams) lost in the overwhelming explosion of the Sonic Boom his comrade was so well-known for.

ΩΩΩΩ

By now, Sonic was virtually deaf to all of Knuckles' protests, the wind screaming in her ears and she excitedly raced on. She could see the small neighborhood in the distance, the modest-sized houses slowly getting closer, and she began to slow down—she was still a law abiding hybrid, no matter what world she was in.

"Thank you for using Sonic Express," she joked as she slowed to a complete stop. "We hope your ride was as enjoyable as we hope you think it was!"

"…What."

"Aw, come on, Knu—" Sonic abruptly cut herself off as she caught sight of her companion.

ΩΩΩΩ

Knuckles' dreadlocks were spread like wings around his head, his red cap long gone. He sank to his knees exhaustedly, giving Sonic a withering glare. "Not one word, asshole. Not one."

He growled as Sonic's sniggers reached his ears, and turned away to begin to smooth down his flyaway spines.

Knuckles turned around once again to see that a dazed and surprised Sonic was now being protectively hugged (more like strangled) by that strange little two-tailed fox he'd often seen hanging around the blue-haired-blunder. What was his name again? Ears? Feet?

Knuckles didn't have anything against the kid, at least not yet, but he really didn't like the way he practically idolized Sonic. Echidnas believed in respect, but they also believed in self-honor, as well. _They also believed in responsibility…_ Knuckles' face darkened as he caught sight of Sonic's carefree, lazily grinning expression as he hugged his sidekick back. More often than not, his ally's recklessness and vacuous stubbornness nearly got them all killed. He sometimes worried for the small child, worried that his "mentor's" half-second-thought actions would someday drag him into dangerous terrains.

Of course, this didn't mean that Knuckles believed he was any more suited to take care of the child than Sonic was, so he wouldn't pry into business that wasn't his. However, there were more trying problems at hand.

"Hey," he prompted militantly, taking a warning step towards Sonic, who looked up at his questioningly. "Hate to break up the reunion, I really do, but a house is useless if there's nothing to use it for."

Suddenly, as if the answer to all his questions, a tall chestnut haired girl came stumbling out of the house, looking as if she had been though a war zone. Her hair resembled a rat's nest piled on top of her head, and her face looked red as a tomato. Slightly perturbed, Knuckles took a step back. He hissed at Sonic, "This is with whom you seek refuge?"

Sonic looked at Knuckles as if he'd just asked him for a kiss. "She didn't look like that when we arrived, I _swear_!"

The girl turned bleary eyes on the group, a glare nipping fiercely at her expression. She muttered something in English, and even Knuckles was unable to decipher the string of jumbled-up nonsense.

Just as Knuckles was about to clonk his dumb comrade upside the head, _another_ girl came out, looking eerily similar to the first one, blubbering apologies and trying to usher all of them inside. Knuckles jumped as Sonic elbowed him in the side. "Ask them what's going on," he hissed.

Knuckles glared at him for a second before clearing his throat. "My…" a pointed look at Sonic, "…comrade would like to know what is going on."

At first the girl stared at him, a shaky finger pointing at him. With a defeated sigh, Knuckles braced himself for the barrage of questions on his ability to speak their language, and his strange spiked hair, and _yadda, yadda…_

"…Why are you so short?"

* * *

><p>Knuckles warily watched as the small translating device was tossed back and forth between the neat and clean-looking girl and Sonic as they continued their rather choppy conversation.<p>

"So that's your twin sister?"

"Yes. She sort of has a drinking problem. Bad hangover."

"Drinking? Well, that's no good."

Tails, prudently sensing one of Sonic's grown-up, and rather long-winded speeches about health and safety and such, quickly cut in, grabbing the translating device out of the air. "Were there any events that could have triggered it?"

There was a small silence, the kind of silence you get when you've let a something you didn't mean slip and everyone is staring at you and…

"Our mom died a couple years ago," Melissa said meekly, her head bowing a little. "She started then."

Silence swiftly grabbed their words away again, its heavy hand slowly bearing down upon each of them.

None of them even moved when the creak of the front door sounded through the house and Jones called, "I'm home."


	7. And Two Wayward Time Travelers

Chapter 7:

"Hmph. Sonic, you fool. What the hell have you gotten us into this time?" Shadow interrupted his broody monologue to glower rather nastily at a small child, who immediately clung to his mother, bawling. "If only that foolish faker had just easily given me that damn fourth chaos emerald…"

His black, red-rimmed fabric-clad leg shot out automatically, sending a small pebble shooting off into the distance. He scowled at the sky.

"I'll find you yet, Faker. And you're going to get us out of this mess."

* * *

><p>"This is perfect…" A figure twitched, sending waves down rolls of fat.<p>

"If I may so humbly ask…" Whirring sounds, then beeps. "How can being stranded on an unknown planet be of any help to us, your deviousness?"

"Foolish Orbot." Grumbling, then shifting. "Wouldn't have expected you to understand."

A metallic face, devoid of any emotion, watched from afar, awaiting an explanation as its plump creator sat himself rather comfortably on his plush seat. The figure was only completely comfortable before he began again. "This planet is not as unknown as you may think." A smirk crept its way into his voice, but his face remained neutral. "This is Earth, home of my people. And my people are…rather close-minded." A short, stagnant silence. "Once they realize that _I_ am the one they can trust, they'll turn to me, begging me to halt that blue mutt right in his tracks."

Metal Sonic waited, but his creator said no more. Without a sound, he turned to carry out the unspoken orders.

* * *

><p>"So…"<p>

Sonic, whose eyes had been previously trained on the television and was sitting directly in front of the couch, quickly looked up to catch the wayward translating device as it fell into her hands. Mellissa was upside-down and _on_ the couch, mindlessly playing with her ears.

"'Sup?"

"I'm wondering why you're so small."

"Why are you humans so big?" Sonic countered playfully, and, after a slight pause for the translating, felt Melissa stiffen. "I'm kidding, kidding," she chided. "Must be an animal thing."

"Hm," Melissa conceded. "So what kind of animal are you infused with, anyway? I don't know any blue animals."

"Hedgehog. Mutation from running." Sonic shrugged helplessly.

"How fast can you go?"

"Dunno."

"A helluva lot faster than his brain, that's for sure," Knuckles interjected, plopping himself onto the couch beside Melissa. "And he's blue because he's chaos-infused."

Sonic sighed dreamily as Melissa continued to rub her ears. "Didn't understand that, but it had better be good. Little lower, please."

Melissa complied and Knuckles rolled his eyes. She turned her attention on him. "How come you can speak English, Knuckles?"

The echidna-hybrid shrugged helplessly. "I kind of took it upon myself to learn. Many wayward travelers come upon my island."

Melissa still had a slight disbelief that the hybrid lived alone on a floating island guarding a huge emerald, but she nodded quickly to show she was listening. Something about this guy demanded respect, and she really didn't want to see what would happen if those requirements were not fulfilled. He still seemed like a good guy, though. Just…rather hardcore.

She looked back to Sonic, which was a little uncomfortable in her inverted position. This boy seemed to be the complete antithesis of his comrade. Sure, they were both pretty emotionally hardened, but where Knuckles was toughened by responsibility, dutifulness, and dignity, Sonic was made of complete experience. Easy acceptance, too.

Tails was a little bit different, she noticed, watching him demonstrate his flying to Kevin, who was rapt with attention. He was the epitome of innocence (despite his staggering genius). Of course, he seemed to know much more than any child his age should, experience-wise, but what really struck Melissa was that it didn't really affect him. He still retained a sweet, childish nature.

Melissa let out a breathy sigh. She considered herself rather observant; her quiet calmness lent nicely to that attribute. However, these new creatures certainly had an unearthly, yet learned air about them. They were enigmas, and although Melissa (a young woman of science) usually tended to shy away from things she did not understand, she felt herself drawn to them, fascinated.

She gasped when Sonic's ears suddenly flicked out of her grasp. "Sonic—"

"Shh," Sonic hushed her, ears swiveled attentively to the screen.

Knuckles' harsh, guttural whispers reached Melissa's ears, and judging by the way Sonic was nodding, a grim look on his face, Knuckles was probably translating.

"Shadow," Sonic spoke, and the very name sent spiraling chills down Melissa's spine. What a scary name.

"Who is Shadow?" she prompted Knuckles.

Knuckles looked as if he had swallowed something very bitter. "An asshole."

With a cocky grin, Sonic quickly rose (Melissa did too, she was starting to get a headache). Turning to Knuckles, she said two words in English:

"Let's go!"

Blue and black, boot-like shoes landed neatly on the grass, pale arms setting a certain purple-haired cat hybrid down. "Silver…" Golden, slit-pupil eyes staring searchingly into her partner's.

* * *

><p>"It'll be fine, Blaze," Silver let his hand drop away from Blaze's waist and come to rest upon his crown of wayward silver spikes. Alabaster ears flicked uncertainly. "Earth is where she has come. The Iblis Trigger. We'll find her, Blaze, don't you worry."<p>

**I know, I know. I suck. But hey! At least you got an update! (shot)**

**Okay. Okay. Sorry about the cliffhanger, you guys. I promise the next chapter will be coming soon! Also, please PLEASE tell me if the events in this story are being a little too rushed and if I should slow down a bit.**


	8. And a Man with No Plan

8:

"School? Why would you go there? Ask her why, Knuckles!"

Knuckles, the new designated translator, sighed and reported Sonic's feedback to the slightly amused human, whose small half-smile slowly morphed into a fully fledged grin. Melissa chuckled as she watched Sonic frown petulantly at her, green eyes narrowed ever so slightly.

A thought struck her.

"Hey, Sonic—" she paused, then looked pleadingly to Knuckles, who had just been lumbering back to the living room. He sighed wearily, then waved for her to go on. "Hey, Sonic, how come you're always squinting your eyes like that?"

As Knuckles translated, Melissa watched Sonic flinch, confused, then scratch his head as if thinking, green eyes rolling over so slightly to the left, away from her…

Perfect!

The tense hand that hand been holding the wooden door slightly ajar flung wildly backwards, a gust of air blowing through the foyer.

"Well, I guess it's…" Sonic cut herself off as she caught sight of the lazily swinging door, accompanied by Melissa's absence. "What the-!" She peeked out the door to catch sight of Mr. Jones in his car, _with Melissa in the front seat_, backing out of the driveway. "Damn." She snapped her fingers. "She tricked me."

Knuckles sniggered from behind her. "I thought _I_ was the gullible one."

Sonic glared. "You are. By the way, can you feel Shadow's energy?"

Knuckles, who had been frowning at her previous crack, answered, "Yeah. It's dormant, so I'm guessing he's found somewhere to stay. I can't get an exact location, though. He's made himself pretty hard to find." He gave Sonic a sidelong glance. "You want to go look for him?"

After a moment's consideration, Sonic shook her head. "No, not yet. I don't wanna cause trouble for this town just yet, you know? Our fighting could cause damage."

"Yes, but he could too!" Knuckles argued. "It's best to find him now before it's too late!"

"But we could-!"

"Look, I'm just saying we should find him. We don't have to start anything just yet, okay?" He clasped a heavily gloved hand on his comrade's shoulder. "It'd save us a lot of trouble."

Sonic sighed gustily. "Okay. I see your point. Fine. But we _only_ find him. Nothing else, okay?"

"Got it."

Sonic left Knuckles and headed for the guest room in which they were staying. She opened the door and poked her head in, only to find Tails fiddling with the translator. He was alone now, since Kevin had already left for school. "Yo," she said softly, watching him startle and turn in his seat. The small, once empty desk had become cluttered with blueprints and pieces of metal to Joneses had let Tails use. The little fox hybrid often spent long hours poring eagerly over bits of scrap metal he put together. Sonic worried about his eating habits, so she oftentimes put plates of food next to him as he worked. However, she was always reassured when she returned to find them empty.

"Hey, big bro," Tails greeted, rubbing his hands free of the blackening dirt of the metal. "I was just modifying to translator. You wanna see?"

"Maybe later, li'l bro. Listen, we're heading off to find Shadow, you game?" Deny and distract.

"Boy, do I ever!" Tails' eyes shone with excitement. "It's so _boring_ here, Sonic!"

"I know the feeling. I can't even hit forty in here with all this clutter. Let's juice, kid!"

Tails grinned. Somehow, Sonic had seemed on edge for a while, what with being stuck in a small-sized house—not to mention being stuck in a completely different world. Now, along with the prospect of adventure, a bit of his old shining enthusiasm had come back. And for that, Tails was glad.

He didn't know what he would do if Sonic ever changed.

* * *

><p>"I've gotten word that Project Shadow is back on Earth. I take it you know what to do?"<p>

"Y-yes, sir. My men are out searching for him as we speak. Also, there are a few other—"

"Thank you, Officer Jones. Although it would be easier to keep in touch if you were part of GUN. Your salary would be nothing to sneeze at. How does a new house sound?"

Jones stiffened. Ever since the death of his wife, money wasn't a very easy thing to simply come by anymore. With two teenage daughters on the brink of adulthood and a small son who still wasn't able to understand the concept of the inability to afford, it was even harder to make ends meet. Being a police chief wasn't a very high-paying job in itself. Working with GUN looked tempting.

Still, GUN was top-secret business, and with an entire family to uphold (along with a ridiculously curious and hyperactive son), keeping things under wraps wouldn't be easy.

And yet he had two fascinating test subjects right under his nose! It was killing him that he was so close to a huge sum of money and a better life for his family and yet so far.

* * *

><p>Shadow cracked open one lava-red eye, processing his surroundings. Ah, yes, an alleyway—rather spacious. The all-too-familiar stench of dried blood and rotting human flesh reached his sensitive nose. He had been jumped last night by a group of rowdy, drunken teenagers looking for a fight.<p>

He stood up and rolled his neck, smoothing out the crinkles of his jacket. The fools wouldn't make the same mistake again.

He left the corpses there for the police to discover.

Over the years, he'd learned to kill cleanly and efficiently. It wasn't a very good idea to have bloodstains all over your body ten feet away from a mangled corpse. The nagging voice itching in the back of his mind had dissipated without much of a fight a while ago—after all, this was what Maria wanted, right? Revenge for her death.

His ears flattened against his red-striped hair as a large, all-too-familiar _boom_ sounded. His features angled downwards into a leering smirk. It looked like he wouldn't have to dirty himself searching for the blue bastard after all. He strolled casually into the street, arms folded behind his head in a subtle gesture of nonchalance. He ignored the weak humans passing by.

After all, when Sonic got there, all eyes would be on him anyway.

* * *

><p><em>Surroundings scan.<em>

_ Large sum of chaos energy detected._

_ Large sum of chaos energy detected._

_ Large sum of—_

"Damn!" A meaty fist pounded brutally into the keyboard. "Shut up already, you blasted piece of metal!"

Robotnik leaned into his well worn chair (doggedly ignoring the protesting screech), and stroked at his prized facial hair. Jagged eyebrows pushed downward onto hidden eyes in a frustrated scowl. While he had been counting on Sonic and Project Shadow to find each other and subsequently try to beat each other into a pulp, he hadn't been counting on the fact that the chaos emeralds were nowhere in sight. At the very least, he'd expected one of them to hold onto the potent jewels.

It seemed as if Earth had another set of chaos emeralds, but that was the problem. They were being selfishly guarded by this strange organization called _GUN._

While Robotnik was in no way averse to using persuasion and diplomacy to get what he wanted, there was the problem that GUN probably wasn't as dumb as it looked (that was obvious; they were _his_ kind, after all), and probably would see right through him.

What he needed to do was set them against Sonic and his colorfully wild friends. But the question was _how_.

How could he possible put that rat with a hero complex and his useless lackeys in a bad light?

He let out an audible sigh and decided to wait. The answer would come to him. He was sure of it.

**Wow.**

**I suck.**

**I am SO, SO sorry about the wait. I went on a vacation (with NO internet access) and I was unable to use my computer for the longest time. THEN I got writer's block and THEN I totally forgot about this thing. I'm really, really sorry, you guys. Seriously.**

**But I hope you enjoyed to chapter regardless!**


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